I said this on Twitter an inning into Doug Mathis’s effort
tonight: “[Dustin] Nippert may pitch for 8 teams before he’s done.He’ll play for a bunch of bad teams.Doug Mathis, on the other hand, will pitch
for winners.”

I have very little doubt that, when Texas is engaged in trade talks over the
next week and a half, Mathis’s name will come up.His ceiling may be that of a back-of-the-rotation
guy, and he’ll never be the centerpiece of an impact trade, but someone is
going to try and make him the Kason Gabbard of a multi-player Rangers package this
month.I doubt they’ll succeed.

I don’t mean to overlook what Nippert did tonight.He came up absolutely huge, and has more raw
tools than Mathis and maybe half his pitching staff teammates.When Nippert executes with that toolbox, like
he did tonight, he can be a quality big league pitcher that dominates from time
to time.

But when Mathis pitches like that, with command and pace and
movement and aggressiveness, he’s the one I have an easier time envisioning
when I blur my eyes and imagine what the 2011 pitching staff will look
like.

Other Twitter comments from tonight, for those of you not “following”:

Categories

Meta

The following are trademarks or service marks of Major League Baseball entities and may be used only with permission of Major League Baseball Properties, Inc. or the relevant Major League Baseball entity: Major League, Major League Baseball, MLB, the silhouetted batter logo, World Series, National League, American League, Division Series, League Championship Series, All-Star Game, and the names, nicknames, logos, uniform designs, color combinations, and slogans designating the Major League Baseball clubs and entities, and their respective mascots, events and exhibitions.